3,554 Shares in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Bought by Paloma Partners Management Co

Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new position in shares of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 3,554 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $271,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SWX. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 461.9% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,371 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 1,127 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas in the first quarter valued at $115,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 520.4% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $195,000 after acquiring an additional 2,576 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Southwest Gas by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,152 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $200,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southwest Gas in the first quarter valued at $202,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Justin L. Brown sold 2,625 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.50, for a total transaction of $200,812.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,822,995. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Southwest Gas in a research note on Monday, May 13th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $77.00 price target for the company.

Southwest Gas Stock Performance

Shares of SWX traded up $0.73 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $73.23. The company had a trading volume of 63,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 408,349. The firm has a market cap of $5.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.14, a PEG ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a fifty day moving average of $73.79 and a 200-day moving average of $70.66. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $56.17 and a 12 month high of $78.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.70 by ($0.33). The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. Southwest Gas had a net margin of 3.56% and a return on equity of 6.71%. Southwest Gas’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.69 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. Southwest Gas’s payout ratio is presently 92.88%.

Southwest Gas Profile

Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, distributes and transports natural gas in Arizona, Nevada, and California. The company operates through Natural Gas Distribution, Utility Infrastructure Services, and Pipeline and Storage segments. It also provides trenching, installation, and replacement of underground pipes, as well as maintenance services for energy distribution systems.